UWaterloo

RAISE Holds Vigil in Solidarity with Sudan

Yvonn Yu

Communications Assistant

Thu, 06/27/2019 - 12:00

On Monday, June 24, 2019, Racial Advocacy for Inclusion, Solidarity, and Equity (RAISE) held a vigil to stand in solidarity with the millions of protestors in Sudan. Students gathered in the SLC lower atrium to listen and learn more about the Sudan Revolution, hear the poetry of local Sudanese artists, and find out how to be a better ally to the movement.

On June 3, the Sudanese military government cracked down on protests against their regime, resulting in a full media and internet shutdown and a bloody massacre of its civilians.1

The vigil held at in the SLC was organized by dedicated Sudanese activists Iman Abbaro, Ola Idris, and Fatima Abbas, and facilitated by RAISE coordinator Hanan Thibeh with help from Zak Ahmed with translation and promotion of the event. The speakers outlined that Sudanese citizens are afraid to leave their homes for fear that they will be killed. People around the world are rallying with the protesters in Sudan and standing in solidarity with the victims of the government’s massacre, they added.

The students organizing and attending the vigil aimed to raise awareness and call on the Sudanese government and supporting regimes to make changes, release prisoners, lift media blackouts, and more. The event provided those who are in the Sudanese community with close ties to the protestors a platform to spread their message in Western countries in hopes that raising awareness and generating more support for this cause even overseas will help toward action being taken.